"No one should be shocked at the federal-court decision upholding an Interior Department ruling that land near Glendale should become part of a southern Arizona tribe's trust land.

On Thursday, U.S. District Judge David Campbell ruled that Interior was legally correct when it decided to allow 54 acres near Glendale to become part of the Tohono O'odham Nation's reservation. The Tohono O'odham intend to develop a substantial casino-resort operation on the property.

The decision will be appealed.

As expected, Campbell ruled extraordinarily narrowly. It is of no consequence to the feds what the impact of Interior's decision may be.

Whether the decision dramatically affects the gaming operations of nearby tribes is of no consequence to the feds. Whether it destroys a tribal-state gaming compact is of no consequence. Whether it forces costly infrastructure demands on the local community also is of no consequence."

Get the Story:
Editorial: Narrow casino ruling ignores consequences (The Arizona Republic 3/6)

District Court Decision:
Gila River Indian Community v. DOI (March 3, 2011)

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